Ventilated Garment

ABSTRACT

A ventilated garment including one or more mesh fabric areas and a plurality of spacers. Each spacer has a generally arch-shaped portion with two ends thereof being fastened on an inner surface of the ventilated garment adjacent to the mesh fabric areas. The mesh fabric areas may be provided at the shoulder portion, the chest portion, and/or the side portion of the ventilated garment. The garment can be lifted up and kept at a distance from the body of a wearer by the spacers to ventilate heat and moisture.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of Chinese Patent Application No. 201010144452.9, filed on Mar. 15, 2010, the entire content of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND

The present application relates to a ventilated garment.

Body heat is generated everyday especially for those who are doing exercise. To keep the heat balance, body heat and moisture vapour should be able to exchange with the ambient environment. To release such body heat and moisture vapour, the mechanism includes conduction, convection, radiation and evaporation. Garment is a barrier layer between body skin and environment. If clothing cannot effectively release such body heat then it may cause discomfort or illness to the wearer. In some existing sports clothing, mesh fabrics or other vented designs are put on certain areas such as chest and underarm in order to provide ventilation effect to the wearer. However, this ventilation effect is limited because the mesh fabrics are tended to closely stick to the skin surface especially when getting wet by absorbing body sweat. Such condition decreases the heat and moisture transfer as the fabric layer blocks the air convection on the skin surface. To solve the problem, some dry quick or high wicking materials were developed. These smart materials can take the sweat away from the body, however they may not able to create a natural convection around the body. Thus, there is a need for further improvements.

SUMMARY

According to an aspect, there is provided an item of clothing including one or more mesh fabric areas, and a plurality of spacers. Each spacer includes a generally arch-shaped portion with two ends thereof being fastened on an inner surface of the item of clothing adjacent to the mesh fabric areas.

According to one embodiment, each spacer further includes a planar base portion extending between the two ends of the arch-shaped portion to form a loop.

In one embodiment, the spacers are made of polypropylene.

In one embodiment, each spacer has a plurality of ventilation openings formed substantially on the entire arch-shaped and planar base portions thereof.

According to one embodiment, the item of clothing further includes a fabric layer covering an outer surface of the arch-shaped portion.

In one embodiment, the fabric layer is made of fine gauge jersey.

According to the illustrated embodiment, each spacer includes two end-to-end arch-shaped portions and a planar base portion extending across the ends of the two arch-shaped portions, wherein each spacer is generally in the shape of the capital letter “B” in cross section.

According to one embodiment, the item of clothing further includes a fabric layer mounted on an outer surface of the two arch-shaped portions of each spacer, wherein the fabric layer is generally in the shape of the number “3” in cross section.

In one embodiment, the height of each spacer from the planar base portion to a top of the arch-shaped portion is about 0.5 cm to about 2.5 cm. Preferably, the height of each spacer from the planar base portion to a top of the arch-shaped portion is about 1.5 cm.

According to the illustrated embodiment, the spacers are provided along the sides of the mesh fabric areas.

In one embodiment, the mesh fabric areas are in the form of elongated strips of mesh fabric.

In one embodiment, the item of clothing further includes at least one spacer provided at a neckline region of the item of clothing.

According to one embodiment, the spacers are fastened on the inner surface of the item of clothing by stitching.

In one embodiment, the mesh fabric areas can be provided on a portion of the item of clothing selected from the group consisting of a shoulder portion, a chest portion, a back portion, a side portion and a combination thereof. The item of clothing can be a sportswear, a T-shirt, a shirt, a coat, a jacket or a suit.

When the item of clothing is being worn, the spacers are positioned on the skin surface and the whole item of clothing can be lifted up by the spacers thereby keeping the inner surface of the item of clothing and the mesh fabric areas at a distance away from the skin surface.

The various features of novelty which characterize the invention are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages, and specific objects attained by its use, reference should be made to the drawings and the following description in which there are illustrated and described preferred embodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Specific embodiments of the ventilated garment will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a ventilated garment according to an embodiment disclosed in the present application;

FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of a ventilated garment according to an embodiment disclosed in the present application;

FIG. 3 is a front perspective view of an inside out ventilated garment of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view of an inside out ventilated garment of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a spacer of the ventilated garment;

FIG. 6 is a chart showing the differences in percentage change of thermal insulation and moisture vapour resistance in standing and no wind condition;

FIG. 7 is a chart showing the differences in percentage change of thermal insulation and moisture vapour resistance in standing and windy condition;

FIG. 8 is a chart showing the differences in percentage change of thermal insulation and moisture vapour resistance in walking and no wind condition; and

FIG. 9 is a chart showing the differences in percentage change of thermal insulation and moisture vapour resistance in walking and windy condition.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made in detail to a preferred embodiment of the ventilated garment, examples of which are also provided in the following description. Exemplary embodiments of the ventilated garment are described in detail, although it will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art that some features that are not particularly important to an understanding of the ventilated garment may not be shown for the sake of clarity.

Furthermore, it should be understood that the ventilated garment is not limited to the precise embodiments described below and that various changes and modifications thereof may be effected by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the protection. For example, elements and/or features of different illustrative embodiments may be combined with each other and/or substituted for each other within the scope of this disclosure and appended claims.

FIGS. 1 and 2 are the front and back perspective views of an item of clothing or garment 1 respectively. The garment 1 may include one or more mesh fabric areas 2. The mesh fabric areas 2 may be in the form strips or panels of mesh fabric, which define a plurality of ventilation apertures for ventilating heat and moisture from the body of a wearer to the outside environment. The mesh fabric may be made of polyester or any other suitable material. The mesh fabric areas 2 may be provided at the left and right shoulder areas 21, across the chest area 22, the left and right front vertical sides 23 near the two side seams of the garment 1, the back area, and a combination thereof.

For this invention, the mesh fabric area means an area which defines a plurality of apertures larger than the apertures in the fabric of the item of clothing on which the mesh fabric area is provided so that the permeability of the mesh fabric area is greater than the permeability of the surrounding fabric of the item of clothing.

Although it has been shown that the mesh fabric areas 2 are formed of elongated strips or panels of mesh fabric, it is understood that the mesh fabric areas 2 can be formed in any other shapes and designs.

To provide sufficient ventilation between the body and the garment 1, a plurality of spacers 3 is provided on an inner surface of the garment 1. The spacers 3 may be formed adjacent to the mesh fabric areas 2. According to the illustrated embodiment, the spacers 3 are attached along the two longitudinal sides of the mesh fabric areas 2.

Although it is shown in the application that the item of clothing or garment 1 is a T-shirt, it is understood that the garment can be a sportswear, a shirt, a jacket, a coat, or a suit, etc. The material structure of the garment 1 can be fine gauge jersey. The material may be cotton, polyester or any other suitable material. The sleeves 4 of the garment 1 may be made of the same material as the garment 1. The sleeves 4 of the garments may also be made of a different material. Regardless of the material of the garment 1 and the sleeves 4, it would not affect the ventilation effect of the garment 1 disclosed in the present application.

FIGS. 3 and 4 are the front and back perspective views of the garment 1 being turned inside out respectively. It can be seen that the spacers 3 are formed along the sides of the mesh fabric areas 2. Although it has been shown and described that the spacers 3 are formed along the sides of the mesh fabric areas 2, it is contemplated that the spacers 3 can be formed at other parts of the garment 1 to enhance the ventilation effect. For example, one or more spacers 3 can be formed along the neckline so that heat and moisture can escape therefrom. According to the illustrated embodiment, there are two spacer 3 formed at the front and back of the neckline area respectively. These additional spacers 3 can enhance the ventilation of heat and moisture from the body to the outside environment resembling a chimney effect.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the spacer 3 of the garment 1. The spacer 3 may include at least one generally arch-shaped portion 30 with two ends thereof being fastened on the inner surface of the garment 1 adjacent to the mesh fabric areas 2. The spacer 3 may further include a planar base portion 31 extending between the two ends of the arch-shaped portion 30 to form a loop.

According to the illustrated embodiment, the spacer 3 includes two end-to-end arch-shaped portions 30 and a planar base portion 31 extending across the ends of the two arch-shaped portions 30. The two end-to-end arch-shaped portions 30 and the planar base portion 31 together forms a spacer 3 generally having the shape of the capital letter “B” in cross section.

The two arch-shaped portions 30 and the planar base portion 31 may be made of polypropylene or any other suitable material. The two end-to-end arch-shaped portions 30 can be integrally formed by a single piece of material.

The arch-shaped portions 30 can provide a better support to the weight of the garment 1. The height of the spacers 3 may be about 0.5 cm to about 2.5 cm from the lowest point of the planar base portion 31 to a top of the arch-shaped portions 30. Preferably, the height of the spacers 3 is about 1.5 cm.

The two arch-shaped portions 30 and the planar base portion 31 may be provided with a plurality of ventilation openings 33 formed substantially on the entire arch-shaped and planar base portions 30, 31 to maximize the ventilation effect.

A soft fabric layer 32 may be attached to and cover an outer surface of the arch-shaped portions 30. According to the illustrated embodiment, the fabric layer 32, generally in the shape of the number “3” in cross section, is mounted on the outer surface of the two arch-shaped portions 30 of the spacer 3. The fabric layer 32 may be made of fine gauge jersey or any other suitable material that is soft, smooth, comfortable and non-irritating to the skin. The spacers 3 can be attached on the inner surface of the garment 1 by stitching 5 at its two ends. Hence, only stitch marks can be visible from the outside of the garment 1.

When the garment 1 is being worn, the spacers 3 are positioned on the skin surface. The whole garment 1 can be lifted up by the spacers 3 so that the inner surface of the garment 1 and the mesh fabric areas 2 can be kept at a distance away from the skin in order to provide ventilation effect on the skin surface. This propping up effect creates a bigger air gap between the garment 1 and the body of the wearer so that air ventilation can be carried out effectively.

Testing Samples

Two T-shirt styles (Style A & B) were designed. They were made of the same materials, which include jersey fabric (95% cotton, 5% spandex; with fine gauge knitwear structure) and the mesh fabric (100% polyester). They had in the same size and construction.

Style A—Basic short-sleeved T-shirt without any spacer materials attached. It represented a common T-shirt that could be obtained from the available market.

Style B—Basic short-sleeved T-shirt with spacer materials attached under the shoulder and torso areas.

As air movement is one of the critical elements, panels made of mesh fabric were sewn on the T-shirt to improve air ventilation. In each style, five combinations of mesh areas were applied as followings:

NM: No mesh panels on the T-shirt; MS: Mesh panels provided at the shoulder areas of the T-shirt (front and back); MSC: Mesh panels provided at the shoulders and across the chest area of the T-shirt; MSS: Mesh panels provided at the shoulders and the two front vertical panels near the two side seams of the T-shirt; and MO: Mesh panels provided at the shoulders, across the chest, and the two front vertical panels near to the two side seams of the T-shirt.

Measurement Method

A movable perspiring fabric thermal manikin “Walter” was used for the testing. It was located at the chamber at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong. The experiment was conducted at 20.0±0.5° C. and 65.0±2% RH. As the design was mainly focus on the pumping effect generated by human's movement, two postures (walking and standing still) of Walter were tested. And also two different wind modes were set (no wind with air velocity 0.5±0.3 m/s, and windy with air velocity 2±0.5 m/s). Thus, the test had 4 different conditions:

1. Standing still in no wind condition; 2. Standing still in windy condition (air velocity 2±0.5 m/s); 3. Walking at 1.24 km/h in no wind condition; 4. Walking at 1.24 km/h in windy (air velocity 2±0.5 m/s) condition.

Measuring Clothing Thermal Insulation and Moisture Vapour Resistance

Clothing thermal insulation (R_(t)) and moisture vapour resistance (R_(et)) are the two most important parameters for thermal comfort. By testing on the sweating fabric manikin—“Walter”, these two parameters can be calculated.

The total thermal insulation, including the insulation of clothing and surface air layer, is

$\begin{matrix} {{R_{t} = \frac{A_{s}\left( {{\overset{\_}{T}}_{s\;} - T_{a}} \right)}{H_{s} + H_{p} - H_{e}}},} & (1) \end{matrix}$

Where A_(s) is the total surface area of the manikin (A_(s)=1.79 m²), T is the mean skin temperature, T_(a) is the mean temperature of the environment, H_(s) is the heat supplied to the manikin or the heat generated by the heaters, H_(p) is the heat generated by the pump, and H_(e) is the evaporative heat loss from water evaporation. The evaporative heat loss can be calculated by

H_(e)=λQ,  (2)

Where λ is the heat of evaporation of water at the skin temperature, and Q is the perspiration rate or water loss per unit time, which can be measured by measuring the water supply.

The total moisture vapor resistance, including the resistance of clothing and the surface air layer, can be calculated by

$\begin{matrix} {R_{{et}\;} = {\frac{A_{s}\left( {P_{s}^{*} - {{RH}_{a}P_{a}^{*}}} \right)}{H_{e}} - R_{es}}} & (3) \end{matrix}$

Where P*_(s) is the saturated water vapor pressure at the skin temperature, which is the water vapor pressure of the water film inside the skin. RH_(a) is the relative humidity of the surrounding environment in a fraction, P*_(a) is the saturated water vapor pressure in the surrounding environment, and R_(es) is the moisture vapor resistance of the skin.

Results

The experimental results were listed in Tables 1 & 2 and the differences of their percentage change were plotted in FIGS. 6-9. The coefficients of variation of repeated tests were generally less than 5.0%. The T-shirts with lower Rt and Ret values are preferred because they indicate that the design has higher ability to release body heat and moisture vapour through the garment. Style A without any mesh exposed was set as control piece because it was a common T-shirt without special design for body ventilation. Hence its percentage in Rt and Ret remained at 0%.

TABLE 1 Total thermal insulation and moisture vapour resistance in no wind condition Standing Walking (no wind) (no wind) Mean S.D. Mean S.D. Style A NM R_(t) 0.126 0.006 0.116 0.003 R_(et) 20.85 0.45 18.51 0.3 MS R_(t) 0.122 0.005 0.113 0.004 R_(et) 18.82 0.65 17.643 0.37 MSC R_(t) 0.121 0.005 0.115 0.003 R_(et) 18.72 0.55 17.301 0.45 MSS R_(t) 0.119 0.005 0.113 0.004 R_(et) 18.85 0.47 17.5 0.47 MO R_(t) 0.12 0.005 0.114 0.002 R_(et) 18.77 0.44 17.439 0.13 Style B NM R_(t) 0.122 0.005 0.115 0.004 R_(et) 19.6 0.63 17.85 0.53 MS R_(t) 0.119 0.005 0.112 0.005 R_(et) 18.13 0.69 17.382 0.29 MSC R_(t) 0.122 0.004 0.112 0.004 R_(et) 18.34 0.57 17.008 0.32 MSS R_(t) 0.121 0.005 0.11 0.002 R_(et) 18.01 0.64 17.062 0.53 MO R_(t) 0.121 0.006 0.11 0.002 R_(et) 17.89 0.34 16.75 0.45

TABLE 2 Total thermal insulation and moisture vapour resistance in windy condition Standing (windy) Walking (windy) Mean S.D. Mean S.D. Style A NM R_(t) 0.067 0.001 0.063 0.001 R_(et) 7.52 0.23 7.57 0.23 MS R_(t) 0.064 0.001 0.061 0.003 R_(et) 7.35 0.13 6.861 0.33 MSC R_(t) 0.062 0.01 0.059 0.002 R_(et) 6.52 0.2 6.902 0.28 MSS R_(t) 0.062 0.001 0.059 0.001 R_(et) 6.48 0.13 6.646 0.23 MO R_(t) 0.061 0.001 0.059 0.001 R_(et) 6.4 0.24 6.309 0.14 Style B NM R_(t) 0.063 0.001 0.06 0.002 R_(et) 7.28 0.11 7.193 0.15 MS R_(t) 0.062 0.001 0.059 0.001 R_(et) 6.59 0.19 6.693 0.1 MSC R_(t) 0.06 0.001 0.056 0.001 R_(et) 5.84 0.21 6.057 0.12 MSS R_(t) 0.06 0.001 0.056 0.001 R_(et) 5.774 0.2 5.801 0.08 MO R_(t) 0.059 0.001 0.056 0.001 R_(et) 5.68 0.28 5.663 0.16

As shown in FIG. 6, when Walter was standing still in no wind condition, putting mesh panels on the T-shirt (i.e. Style A) could reduce certain numbers of Rt and Ret, range from −3.2% to −5.6% in Rt and −9.7% to −10.3% in Ret. If spacer materials was put under the T-shirts and the mesh fabrics were not covered, the range decreased from −12% to −14.2% in Ret value. However in this condition the difference of Rt reduction between the two designs was not remarkable. Once wind was applied in the test (FIG. 7), the difference was slightly increased. However, the difference between the two T-shirt styles was less than 6%. Although Style B could not reduce much in Rt value, it had relatively more improvement in reducing the moisture vapour resistance (Ret). Originally style A could reduce 13.3%, 13.8% and 14.9% when the mesh fabrics were provided at the shoulders and chest, shoulders and sides, and all areas respectively. If such design could be combined with spacer materials under the T-shirt (i.e. style B), then the reduction of Ret increased to 22.3%, 23.2% and 24.5% respectively. The difference between the two styles was approx. 9%.

FIGS. 8 and 9 plotted the Rt and Ret in walking for both no wind and windy conditions. In no wind condition, Style B generally recorded lower Rt and Ret values than style A, especially when mesh fabrics were provided at the shoulders and chest, shoulders and sides and all areas. However, the general distribution of Rt and Ret was still even and the difference was between −0.9% to −5.2% for all the designs in style A and B. However when wind is applied in this situation, the body ventilation of style B improved. For total thermal resistant (Rt), when mesh parts were provided at the shoulders and chest, shoulders and sides, and all areas, each of them reduced 11% than the control piece. For Ret reduction, they reduced 20%, 23.4% and 25.2% respectively. Compare the same mesh combination with style A, they improved the body ventilation by 11.2%, 11.2% and 8.5% respectively.

CONCLUSION

Basically, Style A could release body heat and moisture vapour when some mesh fabrics were provided on certain areas. However additional spacer materials provided inside to keep the fabric layer away from the skin can enhance such effect, especially when wind was applied. Because wind can improve the chimney effect which brings warm and saturated air out of the T-shirt. However one important design feature has to work with the spacer materials is the placement of the mesh fabric. This mesh fabric is good for the chimney effect because of its porous structure so that the warm and moisture air can be released from the body. From the test, only putting spacer materials under the T-shirt with no mesh contributed less effect in thermal transfer. Or only putting mesh on the shoulders area may not be effective enough for body ventilation. Of course, like the design in the test, keeping mesh of shoulders, chest and sides open could contribute the best effect in body ventilation.

While there have been described and pointed out fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changes, in the form and details of the embodiments illustrated, may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention. The invention is not limited by the embodiments described above which are presented as examples only but can be modified in various ways within the scope of protection defined by the appended patent claims. 

1. An item of clothing comprising: one or more mesh fabric areas; and a plurality of spacers each comprising a generally arch-shaped portion with two ends thereof being fastened on an inner surface of the item of clothing adjacent to the mesh fabric areas.
 2. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, wherein each spacer further comprises a planar base portion extending between the two ends of the arch-shaped portion to form a loop.
 3. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the spacers are made of polypropylene.
 4. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 2, wherein each spacer has a plurality of ventilation openings formed substantially on the entire arch-shaped and planar base portions thereof.
 5. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a fabric layer covering an outer surface of the arch-shaped portion.
 6. The item of clothing claimed in claim 5, wherein the fabric layer is made of fine gauge jersey.
 7. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, wherein each spacer comprises two end-to-end arch-shaped portions and a planar base portion extending across the ends of the two arch-shaped portions, and wherein each spacer is generally in the shape of the capital letter “B” in cross section.
 8. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 7, further comprising a fabric layer mounted on an outer surface of the two arch-shaped portions of each spacer, wherein the fabric layer is generally in the shape of the number “3” in cross section.
 9. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 2, wherein the height of each spacer from the planar base portion to a top of the arch-shaped portion is about 0.5 cm to about 2.5 cm.
 10. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 2, wherein the height of each spacer from the planar base portion to a top of the arch-shaped portion is about 1.5 cm.
 11. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the spacers are provided along the sides of the mesh fabric areas.
 12. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the mesh fabric areas are in the form of elongated strips of mesh fabric.
 13. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the mesh fabric areas are provided on a portion of the item of clothing selected from the group consisting of a shoulder portion, a chest portion, a back portion, a side portion and a combination thereof, whereby when the item of clothing is being worn, the spacers are positioned on the skin surface and the whole item of clothing is lifted up by the spacers thereby keeping the inner surface of the item of clothing and the mesh fabric areas at a distance away from the skin surface.
 14. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, further comprising at least one spacer provided at a neckline region of the item of clothing.
 15. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the spacers are fastened on the inner surface of the item of clothing by stitching.
 16. The item of clothing as claimed in claim 1, wherein the item of clothing is a sportswear, a T-shirt, a shirt, a coat, a jacket or a suit. 